I always use my 26er for smoking when its a smaller cook instead of my 22 WSM. The cutoff for me is about 3 large slabs of ribs (using a rib rack), or more than a 10lb butt. For 2-3 racks, a single butt, or a chuck roast.......I head straight for the 26er every time. Its a smoking machine. I smoked a 3.5lb rump roast on the 26er this past weekend that I sliced and used for sammiches. It was perfect. I did about a 1/3 diameter snake of lump, lit a mini chimney of lump to dump on the end, and then tossed a few chunks of red oak (unfinished hardwood floor scraps). It held 220-240 for about 3 hours with zero adjustments once I had it set. Then I opened all the vents at the end for a quick reverse sear. Probably should have taken some pics, but I was more interested in devouring it.